Founders:
Julie Turkel Abrahamson and Shirin Malkani
Company Name:
Girls on Greenwich
Contact info:
How many years have you been in business in NYC?
We launched our e-commerce site, www.girlsongreenwich.com, featuring like-new luxury kids consignment clothing from brands like Bonpoint, Caramel Baby & Child, Makie, Nellystella and Stella McCartney Kids from our West Village HQ in late 2015.
How did you get your start and what was your initial inspiration?
Girls on Greenwich was inspired by my life as a mom with my two daughters in the West Village. I always loved buying nice things for myself but, when I had my girls, I took shopping for them to a whole new level. I was already an avid eBayer and liked to clean out my own closets that way. After having my babies, I was surprised to find a passionate community of moms who collected the same brands that I loved, like Bonpoint and Bonton. This small group of moms were really smart shoppers; they would buy better quality, re-sell the clothes, buy a great mix of new and used clothes and re-sell them again. I realized that I was spending about the same amount that I would have shopping at chain stores, but there was less waste because I was reselling (and other parents were reusing) what I was buying. Moms in my neighborhood would stop me all the time and ask me about my girls’ clothes, but they were not keen on trying eBay. A stand-alone online consignment site was the best way to reach more parents with my message of “circular consumption.”
What do you feel differentiates you from others in your field?
There are other online consignment businesses, like ThredUp, and peer-to-peer selling sites like eBay and Totspot, but they do not curate their selection like we do. We understand what moms want. We have a specific taste level of our own and make the shopping experience easier by selecting the best items. That curation creates a level of trust that other sites do not really engender. Our goal is to build a community of like-minded moms who share the same taste and values. Our buyers consign with us and our consigners buy with us. We like to say we are “easy, green, smart and chic.”
What do you feel gives you longevity in this big city with so many options?
From birth through childhood, kids are constantly growing. There will always be a need to get rid of things and there will be always be the need to buy new things. We want to get to know our customers and anticipate their needs in a personalized way. In addition, we are tastemakers in a great position to help with discovery. We plan to expand beyond consignment of children’s wear into new products for kids and moms, including home and lifestyle items.
How do you positively impact your clientele?
Many of the moms who said they would never buy or sell on eBay consign and buy with us. We gave them an outlet that they trust and, by doing so, we changed how they shop for their kids. Many of our consignors had never purchased used clothing for their kids before shopping with us. For some moms who follow and shop with us, we are introducing new brands to them for the first time. That’s so exciting to see and is precisely why we launched Girls on Greenwich.
What is your favorite part of your job?
That’s a hard one to answer, as there are so many exciting things about launching this new business and so many challenges! I love having my girls involved in the business and really working with them. Shooting them for the editorial features on our site can be rather chaotic, but they are as invested in Girls on Greenwich as I am. They ask questions; they look through merchandise when it comes in; they tell me when they are ready to sell pieces they’ve outgrown; they interact with the people who work with us like family. I am eager to see how this experience helps to shape their interests and career paths.
What is your favorite secret NYC spot?
This is not a best-kept secret, but perhaps a surprise answer coming from a downtown mom: I love to eat lunch by myself at the bar at Fred’s at Barney’s.
How do you benefit mamas?
Girls on Greenwich is a smart shopping solution for modern moms who want the best for their kids. We make it easy and affordable to consign and buy and then consign and buy with us again. We make buying the best for your kids do-able and less wasteful. We also know the brands and products we carry so well that we can provide personalized recommendations for moms who shop with us.
What is the most memorable feedback a client has given you?
We have a customer who lives in Texas and found us via Instagram. She ordered 11 times in three months and became a consigner after four months. She wrote us: “I adore the GoG curation of inventory and adore the lines you carry . . . and [I am] always looking forward to finding some new gems.” That feedback and her loyalty to the site are so gratifying!
Pay it forward and name your top colleagues in the same field or related field:
I am so impressed by Jessica Alba of The Honest Company.
I am in awe of the talented Christine Innamorato, the creative director of Bonpoint.
Julie Wainright of The RealReal has set the bar in online luxury consignment.
What is the best advice anyone's ever given you? Or what is your "mantra" / words to live by?
Be kind to yourself.
As moms, the day can escape us, what is your best time-saving trick?
Lists, for keeping track of all the to-do’s and achieving some peace of mind; Amazon Prime Now, for when you need something like tape or new toothbrushes, but don’t have time to go to the store.